Who Got Rich Off The Student Debt Crisis Summary

Student debt is a topic that generates a lot of debates. From politicians to lenders to students, everyone has an opinion on the topic. With a trillion dollar national debt, it’s not surprising why the topic is such a huge issue and the solutions are even greater. The student debt is a form of debt that is owed when a student has completed college or drop out. The average interest rates for the ungraduated and graduated are 4.45% to 6% (Quadlin). To pay off all the students’ debt, it will take 10-25 years to complete it. College students will have at least six months before they have to make the first payment. Student debts can be a real problem for those who aren’t preparing for them. Student loans debt should have a longer grace period, lower monthly payments and repayment programs that apply to all because students will be able to manage and repay their debts in a timely manner.

A retrospective look might provide a clue as to how so many Americans landed in the whole “student loan” dilemma in the first place. As discussed in the America article “The Student Debt Crisis” as part of the plan to create a ‘Great Society’ President Lyndon B. Johnson signed into law The Higher Education Act of 1965. The act provided more funding to public colleges and universities, giving them more resources so that students would be able to afford college. Hence, the birth of the student loan (2015).

When we think about college and a college education, it seems as though our first initial thought is the student loans and debt that can result in achieving a college degree. Looking back, student debt has risen drastically and has made it extremely stressful for students and families. Many people go through their entire life in debt, especially from being a student. Student debt has always existed; however, now, it is so extreme, almost all students who attend college find themselves deep in debt, and must continue paying off their debt many years after they graduate. For the past two decades, student debt has risen, illustrating how big this social problem has become. The reason student debt is a significant social problem is because of how much it can effect a person’s life, and their families lives, that can carry over to their future. Although there were many things that led up to and impacted the drastic student debt that is now being faced by many students around the world, the corporation Sallie Mae, was the essential factor in why student debt has skyrocketed to unreasonable proportions. Sallie Mae provided the first type of corporation that changed its focus from helping students, to helping themselves. The history and scope of the student debt can help us understand that the corporation, Sallie Mae, was the main cause of this problem.

There is no doubt that wealth inequality in America has been escalating quickly; the portion of total income earned by the top one percent has doubled since the beginning of the 1970’s. The wealthy are the main beneficiaries

As of 2016, the average college graduate owes thirty-seven thousand dollars in loans (Glum). As a whole, Americans owe a grand total of 1.3 trillion dollars. These are figures that grow every year, and worse, the number of people who are defaulting on their payments grows as well. The issue of the student loan crisis is serious, which is why potential solutions are now being discussed. Presidential candidates for the election of 2016 have discussed solutions that range from Hillary Clinton’s debt-free college plan to Bernie Sanders’ free tuition plan funded by taxing Wall Street, while numerous scholars and business intellectuals have suggested amending the bankruptcy code to allow for discharging student loans as a solution to the crisis (Josuweit). In this essay, I will primarily discuss the numerous but limited ways amending the bankruptcy code can alleviate the crisis, and then I will offer alternate solutions to supplement the aforementioned solution.

Student debt has led to many negative consequences for students attending college. Senators tend to have different views when it comes to solving the student debt issue. Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic senator from Massachusetts, has been concerned about the constant rising of interest rates on student loans throughout the years. She proposes a certain bill to help cut down such rates. Bernie Sanders, another Democratic senator from Vermont, focused on the importance of the young generation earning an education. He attempts to make college more accessible for everyone. Lastly, Robert Reich, a former United States Secretary of Labor, has pointed out that college is not for everyone. He believes that individuals should have a choice rather than being forced into college due to society.

Robin Wilson argues the the assumption that withdrawing student loans will potentially lead you to repay them for the rest of your life. In her piece “A Lifetime of Student Debt? Not Likely” Wilson mentions many stories from fellow colleagues regarding student loans. “Ms. Mccosker is among the silent majority of borrowers who are repaying their student loans without much complaint” (Wilson 259). Wilson gives plenty examples from students that are content paying their loan after they obtained the degree. If a student goes to college, proceeds and withdrawals student loans, finishes school and gets an amazing job with the degree she obtained with a loan: wouldn't they be right even though she owes payment on a loan? The topic then shifts to

Individuals dealing with student debt "are postponing marriage, childbearing and home purchases, and pretty evidently limiting the percentage of young people who start a business or try to do something entrepreneurial," said Mitch Daniels, president of Purdue University and the former Republican governor of Indiana (qtd. in Holland). Because it’s almost universally accepted that college is the key to success, students are finding themselves falling head-over-heels in large amounts of student debt justified only by these universal standards. Student debt doesn’t just burden the individuals who are liable, the sheer amount of debt has begun to rattle institutions and financial patterns that are at the core of American society (Holland).

Children are taught young about the American dream and how exactly to obtain it. You go to school, work hard, receive an education, graduate, procure a job, get married, purchase a house and a car, have children, and then you tell the next generation to repeat. And if a young adult should deviate from the norm and decides not to go to college, then the only employment they could ever find is at some restaurant that offers minimum wages. However, as exaggerated as that hypothetical situation is, even myths can hold a form of truth because the truth of the matter is that to ever have a chance at prospering in America. But before an individual can become a student, they first have to be able to afford the cost; and for the average American, they

College debt has risen significantly since “The Great Recession” in 2009. Due to the high college fees, students are faced with lifelong debt. If the rise continues, only the rich will be able to obtain a higher education, resulting in American education to take several steps backwards instead of improving. Although many have tried to fix college debt problem, it has mostly gone unnoticed. Specifically targeting the nation’s youth, college debt is destroying the chances of the lasting effects on the economy from fully recovering.

The Student Loan Crisis is Not a Myth We all know that education is not cheap. There are thousands of students who are struggling to pay back their student loans. Nicole Allan and Derek Thompson of “The Myth of the Student Loan Crisis” believe that there is no student loan crisis. However, Chris Lewis and Layla Zaidane of “Here’s Your Crisis: Student Loan Debt Isn’t a Myth” disagree.

Key informant interviewee Natalia Abrams, stated that “this is a time where media and politicians are talking about student loan debt but they are only focusing on policy for the new college student, but there needs to be a policy for the 43 million existing borrowers.” There are two separate policy issues that need to be analyzed in order to address the student loan debt crisis. Research shows that there is a difference among default rates based on race and socio economic status. These differences left unchecked can wreak social and economic havoc on society. While student loan debt crisis may not be a crisis for all, the danger is the growing amount of debt that a significant fraction of borrowers are currently saddled with that is preventing

Crippling student debt is stifling the growth of the United States economy because it inhibits graduates from being able to spend money on consumer goods and home purchases. One of the biggest decisions every high school graduate has to face comes at the time of applying to college. Deciding to go, and where to, is going to have a big impact on the student life, and in most cases a big factor for this is money. As an effect of that concern student loans were developed. For many students going to college in the U.S. comes with a very important economic decision.

In the United States today, the number of students graduating college with student loan debt is quite astonishing. In the article titled, “How the $1.2 Trillion College Debt Crisis Is Crippling Students, Parents And The Economy”, we will examine and break down the student loan debt crisis by the numbers. Today, almost two-third’s of students graduating college are graduating with an average of $26,000 in debt. For most students, $26,000 is a lot of money when the average annual income for a first year graduate is only in the mid $40,000 a year range. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, student loan debt has reached a new milestone, crossing the $1.2 trillion mark (Denhart, 2013, Introduction, par. 2). With student loan debt levels

Capitalism has been the central force behind the growth of the United States’ progressive economy. Within such advanced economic system the chances of economic disparity are significantly high. In fact, over the past three decades there has being a steady increase in unequal wealth distribution among the economic classes. To sustain the current unequal wealth distribution among the classes of the American population, there are numerous factors that influence and shape this trend. For some members of the population it is alarmingly disturbing to know that recent statistics have shown that, “In the US [alone] the wealthiest 1% of its population owns more than the bottom 95 %” (Gutman). As for the difference in economic wealth, it resulted